Cooperia vaccine

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to nucleotide sequences encoding Cooperia antigens, as well as to recombinant DNA molecules containing such nucleotide sequences and host cells expressing these nucleotide sequences. The invention further relates to Cooperia proteins, to methods for the production of the proteins, nucleotide sequences, recombinant DNA molecules and hosts. Furthermore, the invention relates to vaccines which induce protective immunity against infection by parasitic nematodes such as species of the genus Cooperia and to methods for preparing such a vaccine.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to nucleotide sequences encoding Cooperia antigens, as well as to recombinant DNA molecules containing such nucleotide sequences and host cells expressing these nucleotide sequences. The invention further relates to Cooperia proteins, to methods for the production of the proteins, nucleotide sequences, recombinant DNA molecules and hosts.

Furthermore, the invention relates to vaccines which induce protective immunity against infection by parasitic nematodes such as species of the genus Cooperia and to methods for preparing such a vaccine.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Nematodes, which are unsegmented roundworms with elongated, fusiform, or saclike bodies covered with cuticle, are virtually ubiquitous in nature, inhabiting soil, water and plants, and are importantly involved in a wide range of animal and plant parasitic diseases. Infections with gastro-intestinal nematodes are a major constraint on ruminant (cattle, sheep, goats, etc.) welfare and production worldwide. Infections with these parasites can lead to severe disease (diarrhea or anemia are typical symptoms). Among the economically important effects on livestock are reduction in milk, meat and wool production, weight gain and occasional death.

Important trichostrongylid parasites in cattle (bovine) are Cooperia oncophora, C. punctata, C. pectinata, C. curticei and Ostertagia ostertagi. In small ruminants, e.g. sheep and goats, infections with Haemonchus contortus and Teladorsagia circumcincta are the most important. Although being regarded as a mild pathogen, the helminth Cooperia oncophora is one of the most common intestinal parasitic nematodes in cattle in temperate climate regions worldwide (1) and as such carries a substantial economical footprint as it holds a profound share in production losses (2, 3). A recent study demonstrated that helminth infections increase United States beef production costs by nearly $190 per head according to 2005 market prices (4). Analogous to the use of antibiotics in humans, anthelmintics have long been the method of choice to treat and prevent parasite infections in a reasonably efficient and low-cost manner. For use in cattle, three major classes of anthelmintics are currently available, i.e. imidazothiazoles, benzimidazoles and macrocyclic lactones, the latter being the most frequently used in Cooperia oncophora treatments. However, the downside to this medal has gradually become apparent during the last decade as numerous reports of developing anthelmintic resistance have surfaced throughout the world (5-9). In addition, there is a concern regarding drug residues in meat and the environment. More effective avenues in controlling helminth infections are therefore highly necessary, one of which may involve the development and administration of prophylactic vaccines.

Since the issues surrounding anthelmintic resistance are observed for a multitude of helminths, numerous research groups have invested in the development of recombinant vaccines for e.g. Ancylostoma caninum (10), Onchorcerca volvulus (11-14), Ascaris suum (15-17), Haemonchus contortus (18, 19), Necator americanus (20), and several Taenia (21-23), Echinococcus (21, 22), Fasciola (24) and Schistosoma (25-30) species. However, the efficacy of these vaccines, measured as reduction of egg counts and/or worm burden (reviewed in (59)), was found to vary dramatically and is thus unpredictable.

Currently, no Cooperia oncophora vaccine exists. Several research groups have focused on the low-molecular weight proteins (12-16 kDa) as potential vaccine candidates, however without success (60-61; WO98/01550).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide vaccines for combating gastro-intestinal nematode infections in cattle and more specific Cooperia infections in cattle (bovine).

Another object of the present invention is to provide polynucleotides and proteins (or polypeptides) useful for preparing such vaccines.

One aspect of the invention relates to an isolated Cooperia oncophora protein or an immunogenic fragment of said protein, characterized in that said protein comprises or consists essentially of an amino acid sequence which has a sequence identity of at least 85%, preferably 90%, more preferably 95% to the amino acid sequence as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 1.

Also included in the present invention is an isolated nucleic acid sequence encoding said protein or immunogenic fragment, in particular a nucleic acid sequence having at least 85%, preferably 90%, more preferably 95% identity with the nucleic acid sequence as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 2.

A further embodiment relates to a recombinant DNA molecule comprising the herein described nucleic acid sequence, in particular further including a functionally linked promoter.

A further embodiment relates to a vector comprising the herein described nucleic acid sequence or recombinant DNA molecule, said vector in particular being a plasmid, bacteriophage, cosmid, virus or minichromosome.

The invention furthermore discloses a host cell comprising the herein described nucleic acid sequence, recombinant DNA molecule or vector, said host cell in particular being an animal cell, bacterial cell, yeast cell, insect cell or plant cell.

Another aspect the current invention relates to the protein or immunogenic fragment, the nucleic acid, the recombinant DNA molecule, the vector or the host cell, as described herein, for use as a medicine, more specific for use in the prevention or treatment of a Cooperia oncophora infection. Also the use of the protein or immunogenic fragment, the nucleic acid, the recombinant DNA molecule, the vector or the host cell, as described herein, for the manufacturing of a vaccine against Cooperia oncophora infection is part of the present invention.

A further embodiment relates to a vaccine against Cooperia oncophora infection, characterized in that said vaccine comprises or consists essentially of at least one protein or nucleic acid described herein (including combinations thereof), or a fragment of either, and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier or diluents, said vaccine optionally comprising an adjuvant.

The invention furthermore relates to a method of vaccinating an animal against infection from a parasitic nematode, said method comprising the step of administering a purified or recombinant activation-associated secreted (ASP) protein(s) from the nematode Cooperia oncophora to said animal in order to raise an immune response in said animal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1. A-C: Nucleotide sequences encoding and amino acid sequences of C. oncophora double-domain activation-associated secreted proteins; D: Nucleotide sequences encoding and amino acid sequences of C. oncophora double-domain activation-associated secreted proteins including C- and N-termini.

FIG. 2. Mean EPG output post-infection. C. oncophora eggs per gram faeces were recorded as a function of time, starting 21 days after the first infection, for the groups vaccinated with adjuvant (control) and the High Molecular Weight (HMW) excretone/secretone (ES) fraction.

FIG. 3. Serum immunoglobulin G1 and G2 responses against C. oncophora antigens. Levels of serum IgG1 (white bars) and IgG2 (grey bars) against C. oncophora antigens, present in the HMW ES fraction, are provided as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)-readouts. Statistically significant differences compared to the control group are indicated by an asterisk (*) (P<0.01).

FIG. 4. Mean EPG output post-infection in the field trial. C. oncophora eggs per gram faeces were recorded for the groups vaccinated with adjuvant (control) and the High Molecular Weight (HMW) ES fraction.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention envisions the development of prophylactic vaccines based on the proteomic identification, characterization and immunological evaluation of helminth antigens in the excretome/secretome (ES) that are the target of a protective immune response in the host. In essence, the ES fraction is secreted from the worm through oral openings and/or its outer surface and basically consists of a pool of proteins and other compounds crucial in helminth survival and propagation, host infection and evasion of host immunological responses (31, 32).

The invention provides isolated polynucleotides coding for excretory secretory (ES) proteins of adult stage Cooperia oncophora (C. oncophora) having an approximate molecular weight of 70 kD as estimated by SDS-PAGE, and identified as double-domain activation-associated secreted proteins (ASPs); including analogues, homologues, derivatives, parts or combinations thereof; which proteins are capable of conferring protective immunity on a host against infection by a parasitic nematode.

In one aspect, the current invention relates to an isolated nucleic acid sequence (also referred to as polynucleotide) comprising or consisting essentially of a nucleic acid sequence encoding a C. oncophora double-domain activation-associated secreted protein (ASP), or a part of said nucleic acid sequence that encodes an immunogenic fragment of said protein. In particular, the nucleic acid sequence or said part thereof is at least 85% identical to the nucleic acid sequence of the C. oncophora ASP gene as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 2. Even more particular, the nucleic acid sequence of the present invention further comprises at the N- and C-terminus, respectively, one or both of the sequences CTTTGCTCGCTTGATAATGGAATGACA (SEQ ID NO: 12) and GATGAAGATTGTAAGTGCAGCTCCTGCAGATGCAGCACACAATTATCCATGT GTATCAACCCTAAC (SEQ ID NO: 13). Examples of said nucleic acids are represented by SEQ ID NO: 19, 20 and 21. In a particular embodiment, the nucleic acid sequence of the invention, or a part thereof, is at least 85% identical to the nucleic acid sequence of the C. oncophora ASP gene as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 19.

Preferably, the nucleic acid sequence according to the invention encoding the C. oncophora protein, or a part of that nucleic acid sequence that encodes an immunogenic fragment of that protein, is at least 90%, preferably 93%, more preferably 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99% or even 100% identical to the nucleic acid sequence of the C. oncophora ASP gene as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 2 or SEQ ID NO:19. Nucleic acids having at least 98% identity with the nucleic acid sequence as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 2, are represented by SEQ ID NO: 4 and SEQ ID NO: 6. Nucleic acids having at least 98% identity with the nucleic acid sequence as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 19, are represented by SEQ ID NO: 20 and SEQ ID NO: 21.

In a further embodiment the current invention relates to an isolated C. oncophora protein and an immunogenic fragment thereof, wherein the amino acid sequence of the protein or immunogenic fragment is at least 90%, preferably 93%, more preferably 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99% or even 100% identical to the amino acid sequence as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 1. Proteins having at least 98% identity with the amino acid sequence as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 1, are represented by SEQ ID NO: 3 and SEQ ID NO: 5. The invention also includes an isolated protein comprising or consisting essentially of the above identified amino acid sequence and a further N-terminus and/or C-terminus preferably characterized by the amino acids LCSLDNGMT (SEQ ID NO: 14) and DEDCKCSSCRCSTQLSMCINPN (SEQ ID NO: 15), respectively. Examples of said proteins are represented by SEQ ID NO: 16, 17 and 18. Hence in a specific embodiment the current invention relates to an isolated C. oncophora protein and an immunogenic fragment thereof, wherein the amino acid sequence of the protein or immunogenic fragment is at least 90%, preferably 93%, more preferably 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99% or even 100% identical to the amino acid sequence as depicted in SEQ ID NO: 16, as well as to a nucleic acid encoding said protein, in particular as represented by SEQ ID NO: 19.

The percentage identity of nucleic acid and polypeptide sequences can be calculated using commercially available algorithms, which compare a reference sequence with a query sequence. The following programs (provided by the National Center for Biotechnology Information) may be used to determine homologies/identities: BLAST, gapped BLAST, BLASTN and PSI BLAST, which may be used with default parameters.

The term “isolated” is used to indicate that a cell, peptide or nucleic acid is separated from its native environment. Isolated peptides and nucleic acids may be substantially pure, i.e. essentially free of other substances with which they may bound in nature.

The term “fragment” as used herein refers to partial amino acid sequences (and nucleic acid sequences coding therefore) having at least one immunologic or immunogenic property in common with the native molecule. Such fragments will include at least one epitope (or antigenic determinant) of the native molecule. Normally, they will have a length of at least 8 amino acids, preferably at least 15 or 20 amino acids.

Since the present invention discloses nucleic acid sequences encoding novel C. oncophora proteins, it is now for the first time possible to obtain these proteins in sufficient quantities. This can e.g. be done by using expression systems to express the whole or parts of the genes encoding the proteins or immunogenic fragments thereof according to the invention.

Therefore, in a further embodiment, the invention relates to DNA fragments comprising a nucleic acid sequence according to the invention. A DNA fragment is a stretch of nucleotides that functions as a carrier for a nucleic acid sequence according to the invention. Such DNA fragments can e.g. be plasmids, into which a nucleic acid sequence according to the invention is cloned. Such DNA fragments are e.g. useful for enhancing the amount of DNA for use as a primer and for expression of a nucleic acid sequence according to the invention, as described below.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention the ASP protein is produced by the expression of a polynucleotide as described herein. Suitable vectors for expression of proteins are plasmids, bacteriophages, cosmids, viruses, minichromosomes or stably integrating vectors; the latter in particular for plant or animal cells. Generally these vectors have the property of autonomous replication except for the stably integrating vectors which insert themselves in the genetic material of the host cell and replicate with host's genetic material. Suitable host cells for the expression of proteins may either be prokaryotic or eukaryotic, such as but not limited to bacteria such as Escherichia coli, yeasts such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Pichia pastoris, mycoplasma's, algae, plant cells such as Arabidopsis thaliana, vertebrate cells, or baculovirus/insects cells; the plant or animals cells may be cultivated in vitro or may form part of an intact plant or animal, respectively. The recombinant polynucleotide may contain as an insert a complete polynucleotide coding for the ASP or a fragment thereof. Bacterial, yeast, fungal, insect, plant and vertebrate cell expression systems are very frequently used systems. Such systems are well known in the art and generally available. Vectors may also be used as a way of transporting the nucleic acid sequence into a target cell. In this regard, viruses often used as vectors are Vaccinia viruses (62), Herpesviruses (EP0473210), Adenoviruses and Retroviruses (69). A particular example in the context of the present invention is a bacterial vector. Herein bacteria capable of colonizing ruminants are transformed in order to enable them to express the ASP in such a way that it will lead to an immunogenic response against the parasite. In particular to elicit a strong local immune response at the mucosal surface of the gastrointestinal tract where these parasites usually reside. Suitable bacteria for this purpose are e.g. Salmonella and Lactobacillus bacteria.

An essential requirement for the expression of the nucleic acid sequence is an adequate promoter functionally linked to the nucleic acid sequence, so that the nucleic acid sequence is under the control of the promoter. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that the choice of a promoter extends to any eukaryotic, prokaryotic or viral promoter capable of directing gene transcription in cells used as host cells for protein expression. Therefore, a particular embodiment relates to a recombinant DNA molecule comprising a DNA fragment and/or a nucleic acid sequence according to the invention wherein the nucleic acid sequence according to the invention is placed under the control of a functionally linked promoter. This can be obtained by means of e.g. standard molecular biology techniques, e.g. Sambrook & Russell: “Molecular cloning: a laboratory manual” (2001), Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. Functionally linked promoters are promoters that are capable of controlling the transcription of the nucleic acid sequences to which they are linked. Such a promoter can be the native promoter of the ASP gene or another promoter of Cooperia oncophora, provided that that promoter is functional in the cells used for expression. It can also be a heterologous promoter. When the host cells are bacteria, useful expression control sequences, which may be used, include the Trp promoter and operator (63); the lac promoter and operator (64); the outer membrane protein promoter (65); the bacteriophage lambda promoters and operators (66); the [alpha]-amylase (B. subtilis) promoter and operator, termination sequences and other expression enhancement and control sequences compatible with the selected host cell. When the host cells are yeasts, useful expression control sequences, which may be used, include AOX promotor. When the host cells are plants, useful expression control sequences, which may be used, include phaseolin promotor (67).

Hence the present invention relates to a vector or host cell comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding a protein according to the invention, and a recombinant DNA molecule comprising such a nucleic acid sequence under the control of a functionally linked promoter. This form also relates to a host cell containing a vector comprising a nucleic acid molecule encoding a C. oncophora protein or an immunogenic fragment thereof according to the invention.

The invention furthermore relates to a process for transforming a host to provide a transformed host, which process comprises providing a host, making the host competent for transformation, and introducing into the host a recombinant DNA molecule as described herein. The invention also encompasses the expression product of said transformed host. Preferably the expression product is in purified form.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method of protecting a host from infection by a parasitic nematode which method comprises administering to the host at least one protein, nucleic acid or vector as described herein.

A particular embodiment provides a composition or a vaccine for raising an immune response in a subject. Vaccines may be used therapeutically, or prophylactically i.e. to prevent parasitic infection, in particular infection with species of the genus Cooperia, more in particular Cooperia oncophora. In specific cases the vaccine provided by this invention may be used in a method to prevent or reduce infection or colonisation of a host by a nematode parasite.

In particular, the nucleic acids, proteins or vectors as described herein are used to manufacture a composition or a vaccine, which typically include a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, diluents and/or excipient, and optionally an adjuvant. It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a pharmaceutical composition or a vaccine against C. oncophora comprising, consisting essentially of, or consisting of:

-   -   a therapeutically effective amount of a nucleic acid sequence,         protein, vector or host cell according to the invention;     -   a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier or diluent, and     -   optionally an adjuvant.

The particular pharmaceutically acceptable carriers or diluents employed are “veterinary-acceptable” carriers or diluents and are conventional in the art. These include any and all solvents, dispersion media, coatings, stabilizing agents, diluents, preservatives, antibacterial and antifungal agents, isotonic agents, adsorption delaying agents, and the like. Diluents can include water, saline, dextrose, ethanol, glycerol, and the like. Isotonic agents can include sodium chloride, dextrose, mannitol, sorbitol, and lactose. Stabilizers include e.g. albumin. Adjuvants are known to act in a number of different ways to enhance the immune response. In general, immunomodulatory adjuvants cause a general up-regulation of certain cytokines and a concomitant down regulation of others leading to a cellular Th1 and/or a humoral Th2 response.

As used in the present invention, “adjuvants” include, but are not limited to Quil A, ISCOM, ISCOMATRIX, the RIBI adjuvant system (Ribi Inc.), alum, aluminum hydroxide gel, Cholesterol, oil-in water emulsions, water-in-oil emulsions such as, e. g., Freund's complete and incomplete adjuvants, Block co-polymer (CytRx, Atlanta Ga.), SAF-M (Chiron, Emeryville Calif.), AMPHIGENO adjuvant, saponin, saponin in combination with a sterol (see e.g. US20050220814), QS-21 (Cambridge Biotech Inc., Cambridge Mass.), GPI-0100 (Galenica Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Birmingham, Ala.) or other saponin fractions, polymers such as diethyl-aminoethyl (DEAE)-dextran, polyethelyne glycol, and polyacrylic acid (e.g., CARBOPOL®), N-(2-Deoxy-2-L-leucylam ino-b-D-glucopyranosyl)-N-octadecyldodecanoylamide hydroacetate (also known by the trade name Bay R1005®), monophosphoryl lipid A, Avridine lipid-amine adjuvant, heat-labile enterotoxin from E. coli (recombinant or otherwise), cholera toxin, muramyl dipeptide, or immunomodulators such as cytokines and TLR agonists, cytosine-phosphate-guanosine (CpG) containing oligonucleotides, and combinations of these adjuvants. A preferred adjuvant is a saponin or the adjuvant may include a saponin, such as Quil A. In some embodiments, the adjuvant is a compound adjuvant which may comprise a saponin, and optionally a sterol, at least one of a polyacrylic polymer, a quaternary amine (e.g., DDA or avridine), a Th2 stimulant such as N-(2-Deoxy-2-L-leucylamino-b-D-glucopyranosyl)-N-octadecyldodecanoylamide, and/or an immunostimulatory oligonucleotide.

The adjuvanting compounds described above may be present in the form of an oil-in-water emulsion, wherein droplets of oil are dispersed in a continuous aqueous phase. In other aspects, the adjuvant may be oil-based, i.e., it may contain a continuous oily phase and droplets of aqueous phase interspersed therein. Emulsion adjuvants can preferably be microfluidized to achieve a smaller (submicron) size and a greater uniformity among the emulsion particles, thus resulting in emulsion stability and may even increase the adjuvanting effect of such microfluidized emulsion.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,961,970 teaches yet another submicron oil-in-water emulsion to be used as a vaccine adjuvant. In said emulsion, the hydrophobic component is selected from the group consisting of a medium chain triglyceride oil, a vegetable oil and a mixture thereof. The surfactant included in this emulsion can be a natural biologically compatible surfactant such as phospholipid (e.g., lecithin) or a pharmaceutically acceptable non-natural surfactant such as TWEEN-80.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,084,269 teaches that an adjuvant formulation containing lecithin in combination with mineral oil causes a decrease in irritation within the host animal and simultaneously induces increased systemic immunity. The adjuvant formulation resulting from U.S. Pat. No. 5,084,269 is commercially used in veterinary vaccines under the trade name AMPHIGEN®. The AMPHIGEN® formulation is made up of micelles-oil droplets surrounded by lecithin.

Thus, in different embodiments, the instant invention provides a composition comprising an antigen component, and an adjuvant component. The antigen component may comprise a HMW ES subfraction, an amino acid sequence at least 90% (e.g., at least 93% or at least 94% or at least 95% or at least 96%, or at least 97%, or at least 98%, or at least 99% or 100%) identical to SEQ ID NO: 1 or SEQ ID NO: 16, or a nucleic acid sequence at least 90% (e.g., at least 93% or at least 94% or at least 95% or at least 96%, or at least 97%, or at least 98%, or at least 99% or 100%) identical to SEQ ID NO: 2 or SEQ ID NO:19, or any combination thereof. The adjuvant component may contain a saponin (such as, for example, Quil A), and optionally a sterol (such as, for example, lanosterol, ergosterol, or cholesterol), at least one of a quaternary amine (such as, for example, DDA or avridine), a polyacrylic polymer, the glycolipid (e.g., BayR1005®, and/or an immunostimulatory oligonucleotide. Additionally or alternatively the adjuvant component may contain an oil-in-water emulsion. In yet other embodiments, the water-in-oil emulsion may contain an immunostimulatory oligonucleotide and DEAE dextran. The amounts and concentrations of adjuvants and additives useful in the context of the present invention can readily be determined by the skilled artisan.

Preferably, the composition as described herein is an immunogenic composition. By “immunogenic” is meant the capacity to provoke an immune response in a subject against the pathogen. The present invention accordingly provides compositions for use in eliciting an immune response which may be utilized as a vaccine against C. oncophora. The immune response can be a cellular immune response mediated primarily by NK cells, cytotoxic T-cells, or a humoral immune response mediated primarily by helper T-cells, which in turn activates B-cells leading to antibody production. More specific, by “eliciting or inducing an immune response” is meant that an antigen stimulates synthesis of specific IgG1 antibodies and/or cellular proliferation as measured by, for example, ³H thymidine incorporation of NK cells, T-cells and B-cells. Administering the vaccine of the invention elicits an immune response that results in a reduction in mean cumulative fecal egg count of at least about 60% in an animal in relation to a non-vaccinated (e.g. adjuvant alone) control animal. Preferably, the level of the decrease is about 70%, more preferably about 80% and most preferably, about 90% or greater. Hence the immune response confers some beneficial, protective effect to the subject against a subsequent challenge with the infectious agent. More preferably, the immune response prevents the onset of or ameliorates at least one symptom of a disease associated with the infectious agent, or reduces the severity of at least one symptom of a disease associated with the infectious agent upon subsequent challenge. Symptoms associated with C. oncophora infections typically include, but are not limited to diarrhea and ill thrift.

By “subject” or “host” is meant any animal that is susceptible to C. oncophora, such as cattle. The term “cattle” refers to bovine animals including but not limited to steer, bulls, cows, and calves.

In practicing the present methods, a vaccine or composition of the present invention is administered preferably via intramuscular or subcutaneous routes, although other routes of administration can be used as well, such as e.g. by oral, intranasal (e.g. aerosol or other needleless administration), intra-lymph node, intradermal, intraperitoneal, rectal or vaginal administration, or by a combination of routes. The formulation of the composition or the vaccine can be made in various forms depending upon the route of administration. For example, the compositions can be made in the form of sterile aqueous solutions or dispersions suitable for injectable use, or made in lyophilized forms using freeze-drying techniques. Lyophilized immunogenic compositions are typically maintained at about 4° C., and can be reconstituted in a stabilizing solution, e.g. saline or and HEPES, with or without adjuvant.

Boosting regimens may be required and the dosage regimen can be adjusted to provide optimal immunization. Immunization protocols can be optimized using to procedures well known in the art. A single dose can be administered to animals, or, alternatively, two, three or more inoculations can take place with intervals of two to ten weeks. Depending on the age of the animal, the immunogenic or vaccine composition can be re-administered. For example, the present invention contemplates the vaccination of healthy calves (3-12 months of age) 6 and/or 3 weeks prior to their first grazing season and revaccination at the beginning of the first grazing season.

The term “therapeutically effective amount” refers to an amount sufficient to elicit an immune response in the animal to which it is administered. The immune response may comprise, without limitation, induction of cellular and/or humoral immunity. The amount of a vaccine that is therapeutically effective may vary depending on the condition of the cattle and/or the degree of infection, and can be determined by a veterinary physician. The extent and nature of the immune responses induced in the cattle can be assessed by using a variety of techniques. For example, sera can be collected from the inoculated animals and tested for the presence of antibodies specific for C. oncophora.

In addition to the above described aspects of the invention and including the given descriptions of all modifications and means of production and administration, a composition or vaccine can be provided on the C. oncophora ASP proteins or polynucleotides as described herein as single polypeptides or polynucleotides, or used in combination.

As such, in some embodiments, the method, use, composition or vaccine of the present invention can be based on two or more ASP proteins as described herein, or fragments thereof. In a specific embodiment, at least two, three or more ASP proteins, or nucleic acids encoding said proteins, or fragments thereof, are used in a single composition or vaccine. As such, in some embodiments, the present invention relates to a composition or vaccine based on, comprising, consisting essentially of, or consisting of at least two ASP proteins having at least 85% identity with the amino acid sequence as represented by SEQ ID NO: 1 or SEQ ID NO: 16; or at least two ASP nucleic acids having at least 85% identity with the nucleotide sequence as represented by SEQ ID NO: 2 or SEQ ID NO: 19; or fragments thereof. In a specific embodiment, the composition or vaccine comprises two or three of the proteins selected from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence as represented by SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, 5, 16, 17 and 18 and; or two or three of the nucleic acids encoding these proteins, or as represented by respectively SEQ ID NO: 2, 4, 6, 19, 20 and 21. Examples of specific protein combinations are: SEQ ID NO: 1 and 3; SEQ ID NO: 1 and 5; SEQ ID NO: 3 and 5; and SEQ ID NO: 1, SEQ ID NO: 3 and SEQ ID NO: 5; or the nucleic acids encoding these proteins and as provided herein.

This invention will be better understood by reference to the Experimental Details that follow, but those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that these are only illustrative of the invention as described more fully in the claims that follow thereafter. Particular embodiments and examples are not in any way intended to limit the scope of the invention as claimed. Additionally, throughout this application, various publications are cited. The disclosure of these publications is hereby incorporated by reference into this application to describe more fully the state of the art to which this invention pertains.

EXAMPLES

1. Experimental Procedures

1.1 Preparation of Adult Cooperia oncophora Excretory and Secretory Products

Calves were infected with 100,000 infectious larvae of an in-house Cooperia oncophora strain. Adult stage Cooperia oncophora were collected from the small intestine 21 days p.i. The worms were subsequently placed on a modified Baermann apparatus which was filled with 37° C. physiological water. Worms migrating to the bottom of the funnel were then collected and washed for a minimum of five times in physiological water at 37° C. In a next step, the helminths were transferred and cultured for three consecutive days in RPMI medium (Gibco®, Invitrogen; Carlsbad, Calif., USA) at 37° C. The medium was refreshed on a daily basis and stored at −80° C. After this three-day culturing period, all −80° C. stored media, containing the ES protein fraction, were passed through a 0.22 μm filter and simultaneously concentrated and dialyzed to PBS at 4° C. using an Amicon ultrafiltration unit and Ultracel Regenerated Cellulose ultrafiltration discs (both Millipore; Billerica, Mass., USA). The protein concentration of the obtained ES sample was determined using the BCA™ Protein Assay Kit (Pierce, Rockford, Ill., USA) according to the manufacturer's instructions.

1.2. Size Exclusion Chromatography

Size exclusion chromatographic (SEC) fractionation of Cooperia oncophora total ES material was carried out using a self-packed Superdex 200 16/70 column (GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden). Maximum volumes of 0.5 mL of a concentrated ES protein solution (corresponding to 300 μg of ES protein) were injected and eluted in PBS at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. Protein elution was monitored by absorbance measurements at 280, 254 and 214 nm, and when suitable 1.0 mL fractions were collected (ÄKTA Explorer, GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden). PBS column equilibration and washing steps of at least two column volumes were carried out prior to and after each experiment, respectively. To obtain adequate amount of proteins, multiple rounds of this procedure were performed.

1.3. One- and Two-Dimensional Electrophoresis and Tryptic Digestion of ES Proteins

Denaturing one-dimensional electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) was carried out according to Laemmli (34), including and omitting β-mercaptoethanol in reducing and non-reducing SDS-PAGE, respectively. Native one-dimensional gel electrophoresis was performed with the samples dissolved in 60 mM Tris pH 6.8, 0.1% bromophenol blue and 20% glycerol sample buffer with electrophoresis running conditions as follows: separating and stacking gels consisted of Tris-HCl pH 8.5 and Tris-H₃PO₄ pH 9.6, respectively, with proper amounts of acrylamide-bisacrylamide added, whereas the running buffer was a Tris-Glycine buffer at pH 8.9 and the voltage was set at 90 V.

Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis was carried out as follows. Protein was precipitated by adding five volumes of ice-cold acetone to one volume of ES protein. This was vortexed briefly and incubated at −20° C. for one hour, after which the protein pellet was recovered by centrifugation at 5,000 rpm for five minutes. The supernatant was discarded and the pellet allowed to air-dry, after which it was resolubilized in 8 M urea, 2 M thiourea, 2% w/v CHAPS, 20 mM DTT, 0.2% v/v carrier ampholytes (pH 3-10; GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden). This was left at room temperature for one hour, followed by centrifugation at 8,000 rpm for five minutes to remove any insoluble protein still present. The remaining supernatant, corresponding to approximately 150 μg of ES protein, was applied to 7 cm, pH 3-10, Immobiline™ DryStrip IEF strips (GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden). Covered with mineral oil, this was left overnight at room temperature for rehydration of the strip and uptake of the protein sample. Isoelectric focussing was carried out at room temperature using an Ettan IPGphor3 isoelectric focussing instrument (GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden) with an initial three hour focussing period at 300 V, followed by a five hour linear gradient from 300 to 3500 V and a final 18 h long time-span at 3500 V, yielding a total voltage load of approximately 73 kVh. Proteins resolved in the first dimension strips were reduced and alkylated prior to second-dimensional electrophoresis by incubating the strips for 15 minutes at room temperature in a 50 mM Tris-HCl, pH 8.8, 6 M urea, 30% v/v glycerol, 2% w/v SDS, 2% w/v DTT solution followed by another 15 minutes in an identical solution containing 2.5% w/v iodoacetamide instead of the DTT. The second-dimensional electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), with the IEF strip embedded in the stacking gel, was carried out as described for ‘one-dimensional gel electrophoresis’.

SimplyBlue™ SafeStain (Invitrogen; Carlsbad, Calif., USA) was used to visualize the proteins according to the manufacturer's instructions. Pore size of the gels, provided as a percentage of total acrylamide-bisacrylamide monomer concentration, is 13.5%.

Prior to tryptic digestion, protein bands and/or spots of interest were excised from the gel, washed twice for 20 minutes at 30° C. using a mixture of 50% acetonitrile (ACN)-200 mM ammonium bicarbonate, and then air-dried. Sequencing grade trypsin (Promega; Madison, Wis., USA) was added to a final amount of 0.1 μg and the trypsin-gel slice mixture was then kept on ice for 45 minutes, after which 50 mM ammonium bicarbonate was added until the gel slices were completely submerged. Digestion was performed by overnight incubation at 37° C. Peptides were extracted by adding 60% ACN-0.1% formic acid twice to the gel spots. The extraction buffer was evaporated in a Speedvac apparatus with the remaining peptides being redissolved in 8 μL of 0.1% formic acid.

1.4. Mass Spectrometric Analysis

Tryptic peptides were spotted on a stainless steel matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) target plate and covered with α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid matrix (7 mg/mL in 50% ACN, 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid, 1 mM ammonium citrate) in a 1:1 ratio. Prior to each set of analyses, instrument calibration was carried out using Cal Mix (Applied Biosystems; Foster City, Calif., USA) according to the manufacturer's instructions. Protein identification was obtained by measuring the PMF on a MALDI-tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF MS) system (model 4800 proteomic analyser; Applied Biosystems; Foster City, Calif., USA) in positive ion MS mode. MS/MS was performed to verify the sequences of certain peptides.

1.5. Protein Identification

For peptide mass fingerprint analysis, the obtained spectra were searched against the Cooperia oncophora EST-based transcriptome database (33) consisting of 31,774 amino acid sequences, supplemented with existing NCBI depositions for C. oncophora, using the GPS Explorer™ V2 software platform (Applied Biosystems; Foster City, Calif., USA) which makes use of the Mascot search engine (Matrix Science Inc.; Boston, Mass., USA). The spectra were searched using a 200-ppm peptide mass and a 0.8-Da MS/MS tolerance, with carbamidomethylation (Cys) and methionine-oxidation as variable modification parameters and with a maximum tolerance of two missed cleavage events during trypsin digestion of the protein.

1.6. Sequence Analysis

Following their MS identification, non-full-length amino acid sequences were subjected to NemaBLAST search algorithms (33), yielding several neighboring and/or overlapping amino acid sequences. These were subsequently aligned using the MegAlign software (DNASTAR, Inc.; Madison, Wis., USA), employing the ClustalW alignment algorithm, in most cases leading to a significant increase in sequence coverage and mostly providing full-length amino acid sequences of the identified proteins. These sequences were then subjected to BLASTP analysis (35) employing a non-redundant protein sequence database to assign an identification based on sequence identity.

The double-domain ASP full-length sequence was determined as follows: two degenerate primers (forward, ATGYAACAGKAYTGGGTGAGG (SEQ ID NO: 7) and reverse, ATACACATGGAYAAYTGTGTGCT (SEQ ID NO: 8), with Y and K representing T/C and G/T, respectively) were designed based on conserved regions in the putative double-domain ASP sequence. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using the GoTaq® enzyme (Promega; Madison, Wis., USA) was carried out by mixing 1 μL of adult-stage Cooperia oncophora cDNA with 1 μM of both forward and reverse primers and one unit of GoTaq® in reaction buffer containing 0.2 mM of each dNTP and 1.2 mM MgCl₂. PCR experiments were carried out on a Mastercycler® Ep instrument (Eppendorf; Hauppauge, N.Y., USA) where two minutes at a denaturing temperature of 95° C. were followed by 35 cycles of denaturing (30 seconds at 95° C.), annealing (30 seconds at 58° C.) and elongation (DNA synthesis for 90 seconds at 72° C.). Afterwards, a final elongation step at 72° C. for five minutes was included, after which the PCR mixtures were kept at 10° C. The obtained PCR products were subsequently ligated in pGEM®-T Easy (Promega; Madison, Wis., USA) according to the manufacturer's instructions, after which DH5α competent cells (Invitrogen; Carlsbad, Calif., USA) were transformed with these vector constructs as described by the manufacturer and plated on X-gal (5-bromo-4-chloro-indolyl-β-D-galactopyranoside) containing medium. Fifty-three white colonies were picked and analysed by mixing 15 μL of clone suspension (in water) with identical amounts of the reagents mentioned above. PCR conditions were also duplicated from the abovementioned, be it that only 32 cycles of denaturing, annealing and elongation were carried out. The obtained PCR fragments were sequenced (at the Genetic Service Unit, Ghent University Hospital), followed by matching of the obtained data to the previously recorded MS and MS/MS spectra.

1.7. In Silico Protein Characterization

Following full-length amino acid sequence assessment of the identified proteins, molecular weight and iso-electric point values were determined using the corresponding ExPASy calculation tools (SIB Bioinformatics Resource Portal), whereas N-terminal signal sequences were predicted using SignalP 3.0 (The Center for Biological Sequence Analysis at the Technical University of Denmark) (36) or, when lacking, non-classical secretory proteins were assessed using SecretomeP 2.0 (37). Regarding SignalP 3.0 predictions, identifications were considered positive when both neural network and hidden Markov model algorithms offered corroborative estimations. Non-classical secreted proteins were predicted to yield a neural network score exceeding the normal threshold of 0.5 but not to contain a signal peptide.

1.8. Release, Purification and Derivatization of N- and O-Glycan Moieties

Total ES material as well as separate size exclusion chromatography-obtained ES fractions, i.e. HMW, MMW and LMW fractions, were subjected to serial treatment with PNGase F and PNGase A to obtain released N-glycans. To this end, lyophilized proteins were redissolved in PBS with 1.3% SDS and 0.1% J3-mercaptoethanol, and incubated at 95° C. for 10 minutes, followed by addition of 1.3% NP-40. The samples were then incubated with trypsin-coupled Sepharose for 16 hours at 37° C. while shaking. Beads were spun down, the supernatant transferred to a fresh tube and PNGase F added, followed by incubation for 24 hours at 37° C. while shaking. The mixture was then applied to a C₁₈ RP cartridge (500 mg; JT Baker, Philipsburg, N.J., USA), and the flow-through and wash fractions (2 mL 10% acetonitrile (ACN) and 4 ml water, respectively) were subsequently applied to carbon cartridges (150 mg Carbograph; Grace, Deerfield, Ill., USA). After a wash with 6 mL of water, glycans were eluted with 3 mL of 25% ACN and 3 mL of 50% ACN containing 0.1% TFA. The (glyco)-peptides that remained on the C₁₈ RP cartridge were eluted by applying 5 mL of 30% ACN/0.1% TFA and 5 mL of 60% ACN/0.1% TFA, and these combined eluates were subsequently vacuum dried. The (glyco)-peptides were dissolved in sodium acetate (NaAc) pH 4.5 and, after addition of PNGase A (Roche Diagnostics GmbH, Mannheim, Germany), incubation for 24 hours at 37° C. The mixture was applied to a C₁₈ RP cartridge and a carbon cartridge as outlined above. The purified PNGase F- and PNGase A-released N-glycans in the carbon cartridge eluates were each subjected to labelling with 2-aminobenzoic acid (2-AA) as described previously (38). For clean-up, labelled glycan moieties were loaded on Biogel P-10 (BioRad, Veenendaal, The Netherlands) in 75% ACN and after washing with 80% ACN eluted with water. In parallel, to obtain O-glycan alditols, ES samples were treated with 0.1 M NaOH/1 M NaBH₄ at 40° C. for 24 hr. Samples were then neutralized on ice using 4 M acetic acid and boric acid was removed by repeated evaporation and addition of 1% acetic acid in MeOH. Released O-glycans were purified using C₁₈ and carbon cartridges as described above. For permethylation, dried O-glycans were dissolved in DMSO, after which NaOH (spatula-tip with powder) was added, and the sample was left at room temperature for 10 minutes while shaking regularly. Then, 100 μL of iodomethane was added, followed by 10 minutes of regular shaking and subsequently the addition of 400 μL of dichloromethane and 500 μL of water. Shaking by inversion, removal of the aqueous layer and addition of fresh water were repeated five times before the remaining organic layer was dried under a flow of nitrogen.

1.9. Excretome/Secretome Glycan Analysis by Mass Spectrometry

Employing the assembled amino acid sequences of the identified proteins, in silico N-linked glycan analyses performed using NetNGlyc 1.0 Server (Technical University of Denmark). Experimental glycan analyses were carried out as follows: 2-AA-labeled N-glycan and permethylated O-glycan pools were analyzed with an Ultraflex II MALDI-TOF mass spectrometer (Bruker Daltonics, Bremen, Germany) operating in the negative-ion (N-glycans) or positive-ion (O-glycan) reflectron mode using DHB (Bruker Daltonics) as a matrix. A sample of MMW N-glycans was incubated with Jack bean α□mannosidase (Sigma) in NaAc pH 4.5 for 16 h at 37° C. and analysed by MALDI-TOF MS after application to Zip-Tip C₁₈ and direct elution onto the target plate with a solution of 20 mg/mL DHB in 30% ACN. For glycopeptide analysis, a sample of the tryptic glycopeptide/peptide mixture extracted from the gel slice was applied to a reverse-phase column (PepMap, 3 μm, 75 μm.100 mm; Dionex/LC Packings, Amsterdam, the Netherlands) using an Ultimate 3000 nano-LC system (Dionex/LC Packings). The column was equilibrated at room temperature with eluent A (0.1% formic acid in water) at a flow rate of 200 nL/min. After injection of the sample, elution conditions were switched to 10% solvent B (95% acetonitrile, 0.1% formic acid) followed by a gradient to 60% B in 45 min and a subsequent isocratic elution with a duration of 10 minutes. The LC column was coupled to an Esquire HCT-Ultra ESI-ion trap-MS (Bruker-Daltonics, Bremen, Germany) equipped with an online nanospray source operating in the positive-ion mode. For electrospray (1100-1250 V), electropolished stainless steel LC/MS emitters (150 μm OD, 30 μm ID) from Proxeon A/S (Odense, Denmark) were used. The solvent was evaporated at 175° C. employing a nitrogen stream of 7 L/min. Ions from m/z 500 to m/z 1800 were registered in the MS mode. When operated in the auto MS/MS mode, registering ions from m/z 140 to 2200, each MS scan was followed by the acquisition of MS/MS spectra of up to three of the most abundant ions in the MS spectrum.

1.10. Vaccination Trial

Fourteen male MontBéliard calves, aged 7 months of age at the start of the experiment, were randomized over two groups of seven animals. Housing of the animals, feeding, immunizations with the HMW fraction, challenge infections, faecal egg counts and worm length assessments were carried out as described previously (39), except that in this study animals were immunized with 30 μg protein and 750 μg adjuvant at each immunization. Animals were bled before the start of the trial, and one week after the second and third immunizations. All parasitological techniques were performed blindly, that is without knowledge of the treatment group that the animal belonged to.

1.11. Antibody Responses

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was employed to determine serum immunoglobulin IgG1 and IgG2 levels against C. oncophora. The HMW adult ES fractions was separately coated (1 μg/mL) on an ELISA 96-well plate overnight in carbonate buffer (0.025 M, pH 9.6), then blocked overnight in a phosphate buffered saline (PBS) solution with 0.2% Tween80 and 2% bovine serum albumin (BSA) added, followed by incubation with serum from either the control group (adjuvant only) or the corresponding immunized group (antigen with adjuvant) (serial dilution series of 1/200 in PBS with 0.2% Tween80 and 2% BSA). Sheep anti-bovine IgG1 and IgG2 coupled to horseradish peroxidase (HRP; Sigma-Aldrich; St. Louis, Mo., USA) were used as conjugates (all diluted 1:200 in PBS with 0.2% Tween80 and 2% BSA), with ABTS as the substrate. Optical density was measured at 405 nm with the 492 nm signal serving as a blank.

1.12. Statistical Analyses

Data are presented as arithmetic means. The significance of differences between vaccinated groups and the adjuvant control group was pairwise assessed using a one-tailed Mann-Whitney U-test. Differences between groups were considered statistically significant provided that the corresponding P-value was smaller than 0.05.

1.13. Expression in Pichia pastoris

The protein coding sequence are PCR amplified from C. oncophora cDNA and subsequently inserted as a XhoI-NotI fragment in the Pichia expression vector pPIC9 (Invitrogen Ltd, Paisley, UK). The resulting expression plasmid, pPIC9-OoASP1, are used to transform a Pichia pastoris GnM5 strain (68) by electroporation. Individual clones growing on minimal plates are isolated and tested for secretion of the recombinant proteins by SDS-PAGE followed by Coomassie Brilliant Blue staining and immunoblotting. The glycoform of the secreted proteins is assessed using DSA-FACE glycan profiling (68). Individual clones are subsequently selected on YPD plates containing nourseothricin and tested for recombinant protein secretion and used to inoculate a shake flask culture with BMGY medium. After 48 hours of growth at 28° C., the cells are pelleted by centrifugation for 5 minutes at 1,519×g after which the cells are resuspended in BMMY and further grown at 28° C. Every 12 hours extra methanol (0.5%) is added to the culture and after 48 hours of induction the cells are finally pelleted. The cell medium is harvested and filtered over a 0.2 μm membrane. Upon addition of ammonium sulphate to 50% saturation at 4° C., the recombinants are precipitated and concentrated in a pellet fraction by centrifugation at 18,000×g for 15 minutes. This pellet is dissolved in 40 mM sodium acetate buffer (pH 4.4) and the remaining ammonium sulphate removed by gel filtration using a Sephadex G25-column (GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden). This fraction is then applied to a SP-Sepharose-column (GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden) equilibrated in 40 mM sodium acetate buffer (pH 4.4) and the bound recombinants eluted employing a gradient to 1 M sodium chloride (NaCl) in the same buffer. Fractions containing recombinant protein are pooled, dialysed to 25 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5) and loaded on a MonoQ-column (GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden). The recombinants are eluted from this column using a gradient to 1 M NaCl in the same buffer. Fractions containing recombinant ASPs are pooled and buffer-exchanged to PBS by gel filtration on a Sephadex G25-column (GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences AB; Uppsala, Sweden).

1.14. Field Trial

The trial consists of two groups of 12 Holstein-Friesian calves each. Twenty four helminth-naïve calves, 7 to 9 months old, were randomly divided in twelve pairs. Each pair was randomly assigned to a treatment group (control or vaccinated). Immunizations with the HMW fraction and faecal egg counts were carried out as described in the vaccination trial. One group was vaccinated three times with three weeks interval with the C. oncophora HMW/Asp vaccine in combination with QuilA whereas the other one was injected three times with QuilA only. After the last vaccination, all animals were put on a pasture that was naturally contaminated with infective larvae of Cooperia oncophora and that was divided in 12 identical plots. Two animals belonging to the same group (Control or vaccinated) were randomly assigned to a plot, so 6 plots for the control animals and 6 plots for the vaccinated animals. Faecal samples from the animals were collected weekly to determine C. oncophora egg production.

2. Results

2.1. The Adult-Stage Cooperia oncophora Excretome/Secretome

For reasons of obtaining adequate in-gel resolution and thorough protein separation on the one hand, without compromising in sensitivity, more specifically detecting low-abundance proteins, on the other hand, we sought to apply two complementary techniques. In first instance, two-dimensional gel electrophoretic (2D-GE) separation of the adult-stage Cooperia oncophora ES protein fraction revealed twenty-five clearly visible protein spots, grouped in three clusters termed HMW, MMW and LMW representing the high, medium and low molecular weight protein pools to which they respectively belong. All spots were excised and subjected to matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS)-directed identification, resulting in the successful annotation of twenty-two spots (88% success ratio). As summarized in Table 1 (and Table S1), more than 90% of the HMW fraction consists of a double-domain activation-associated secreted protein-like protein (ASP), displaying some heterogeneity in terms of iso-electric point (pi) values. As for protein content, the MMW and LMW protein clusters appear to contain a broader range of proteins. More particularly, the MMW fraction was found to contain three distinct proteins, i.e. innexin, thioredoxin peroxidase and an activation-associated secreted protein (ASP), here in a single-domain conformation [40]. The LMW protein pool, on the other hand, despite displaying a multitude of protein spots, in fact covers two proteins with as of yet unknown functions and three previously documented low-molecular weight ES antigens/proteins, known as 14-kDa ES antigen, ES antigen 1 and ES antigen 2 (Table 1). Given the high degree of complexity in terms of 2D-GE spot number and distribution, the latter are expected to bear extensive amino acid sequence variation and/or chemical modifications, thereby yielding a considerable number of protein isoforms both in terms of molecular mass and pl values.

In parallel to 2D electrophoretic analysis we chose to fractionate the adult C. oncophora ES proteome by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) mainly for two reasons: i) by applying such a preparative workflow, sufficient amounts of all three fractions (HMW, MMW and LMW) were obtained, and ii) through one-dimensional gel electrophoretic (1 D-GE) analysis of the SEC-obtained fractions low-abundance proteins, which may have been undetectable or masked in 2D-GE, should become more visible and may thus expand the obtained dataset. Indeed, whereas overall a similar protein distribution was noted upon comparison of the two methodologies, SEC fractionation followed by 1D-GE analysis did reveal the presence of a number of additional ES proteins. As summarized in Table 1 (and Table S2), mass spectrometric identification of the protein-bands demonstrated that, besides the double domain ASP, the HMW portion additionally holds very low amounts of a ‘hypothetical protein’, which curiously was observed only under reducing conditions. Similarly, our size exclusion chromatographic approach unmasked two additional proteins in the MMW protein pool, particularly aldose reductase and the parasitic stage specific protein 2, the latter with no further functional information currently available. In contrast to the HMW and MMW fractions, the low molecular weight pool was not revealed to contain any additional proteins to those revealed upon 2D-PAGE analysis.

Notably, both the double- and the single-domain ASPs were observed to migrate as doublets upon one-dimensional gel electrophoretic separation of the HMW and MMW fractions, respectively (data not shown).

TABLE 1 MS-directed annotation of the adult-stage Cooperia oncophora excretome/secretome. The top, middle and lower parts of the table reflect the HMW, MMW and LMW ES fractions, respectively. Homology-based ID^(a) Spots Bands Secr. pred..^(b)/ N-glyc. (#)^(c) M_(r)/pI^(d) (kDa/—) Double-domain ASP 1-4 1-3 SP/Y (2) 53.2/7.67 Hypothetical protein 4 — — Aldose reductase 5 N/Y (2) 35.5/8.32 Single-domain ASP 5 6, 7 SP/Y (1) 30.3/6.26 Innexin 6 — — Thioredoxin peroxidase 7 N/N 21.8/6.90 Parasitic stage specific protein 2 8 NC/N 16.4/7.14 14 kDa ES protein 10, 24 11  NC/Y (1) 14.5/8.54 ES antigen 2 protein 11, 12, 19 NC/N 13.2/5.49 ES antigen 1 13-16, 18, 20,21 10, 12 SP/N 13.9/5.30 Unknown 1 (isotig32303) 8 9 SP/N 12.3/4.69 Unknown 2 (isotig10739) 9, 23 SP/N 14.7/8.22 ^(a)Based on BLASTP-search ^(b)Prediction of protein secretion using the full-length protein sequences as determined in this study or when available at GenBank (indicated with an asterisk). SP: presence of a signal peptide as determined by SignalP 3.0; NC: non-classical secretory protein as determined by SecretomeP 2.0; N: not secreted ^(c)The presence of possible N-glycosylation sites as determined by NetNGlyc 1.0 analysis using the full-length protein sequences as determined in this study (Y: yes; N: no) (number of consensus sites found in the amino acid sequence is given between brackets) ^(d)M_(r) and pI values were determined using the ExPASy molecular weight and iso-electric point calculation tool. Values corresponding to full-length proteins are provided. Cleavage of possible signal peptide was not taken into account.

TABLE S1 MS-directed annotation of the Cooperia oncophora ES proteome, as revealed by 2D-PAGE. MALDI- MS Un- MS² Descrip- Organism MS sequence Matched matched sequence tion (top Spot In-house GenBank (closest E-value Mowse coverage pep- pep- coverage BLASTP No database ID Acc. No homology) BLASTP score (%) tides tides (%) hit) 1 contig05709 AAK35199.1 C. punctata 3E−94 106 20 6 15 5 ASP-like protein 2 contig05709 AAK35199.1 C. punctata 3E−94 198 20 6 15 11 ASP-like protein 3 contig05709 AAK35199.1 C. punctata 3E−94 188 20 6 15 11 ASP-like protein 4 contig05709 AAK35199.1 C. punctata 3E−94 249 20 6 15 17 ASP-like protein 5 contig55746 AAO63577.1 A. caninum 2E−08 83 12 1 13 12 Secr. Prot. 5 prec. 6 isotig14500 XP_003096841.1 C. remanei 4E−29 43 16 11 24 4 Innexin 7 isotig09291 CAD20737.1 O. ostertagi  5E−133 89 38 8 16 13 Thioredoxin per. 8 isotig32303 86 32 3 8 32 / 9 isotig10739 108 12 2 15 12 / 10 isotig25459 AAD09212.1 C. oncophora 2E−10 115 24 4 11 11 14-kDa ES prot 11 isotig09711 AAD09213.1 C. oncophora 7E−62 189 52 18 35 12 ES antigen 2 prot 12 AAD09213.1 AAD09213.1 C. oncophora 0 128 38 5 10 15 ES antigen 2 prot 13 isotig11584 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 3E−13 85 10 1 17 10 ES antigen 1 14 isotig11583 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 3E−13 148 42 8 10 26 ES antigen 1 15 isotig14336 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 5E−20 192 35 11 5 19 ES antigen 1 16 contig45229 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 2E−21 100 35 6 9 8 ES antigen 1 17 No ID 18 CAC38986.1 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 0 160 53 7 4 34 ES antigen 1 19 isotig09711 AAD09213.1 C. oncophora 7E−62 189 52 15 38 12 ES antigen 2 protein 20 isotig17160 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 1E−13 90 41 4 14 8 ES antigen 1 21 isotig26364 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 9E−91 74 46 5 6 23 ES antigen 1 22 No ID 23 isotig10740 162 32 5 11 13 / 24 isotig25459 AAD09212.1 C. oncophora 2E−10 37 10 1 14 10 14-kDa ES protein 25 No ID

TABLE S2 MS identification of protein bands found in the three SEC fractions. MALDI- MS Un- MS² Descrip- Organism MS sequence Matched matched sequence tion (top Band In-house GenBank (closest E−value Mowse coverage pep- pep- coverage BLASTP No database ID Acc. No homology) BLASTP score (%) tides tides (%) hit) 1 contig05709 AAK35199.1 C. punctata 3E−94 315 17 5 16 17 ASP-like protein 2 contig63173 AAK35185.1 C. punctata 1E−89 245 35 7 19 15 ASP-like protein 3 contig05709 AAK35199.1 C. punctata 3E−94 276 30 8 13 19 ASP-like protein 4 isotig24792 XP-003114672.1 C. remanei 5E−13 59 9 2 19 8 Hypothetical protein 5 isotig01086 NP-509242.1 C. elegans  4E−119 345 50 22 15 16 Aldose reductase 6 isotig13456 AAO63577.1 A. caninum 1E−09 180 12 1 14 12 Secreted protein 5 prec. 7 isotig13456 AAO63577.1 A. caninum 1E−09 154 12 1 14 12 Secreted protein 5 prec. 8 isotig00466 ADN00784.1 H. contortus 4E−53 61 65 11 7 0 Par. stage specif. prot. 2 9 isotig32303 75 18 2 9 7 / 10 isotig11584 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 3E−13 119 13 3 15 10 ES antigen 1 11 isotig21044 AAK35204.1 C. punctata 7E−18 159 33 7 10 12 14-kDa ES protein 12 CAC38986.1 CAC38986.1 C. oncophora 0 125 23 1 10 23 ES antigen 1 2.2. Multi-Protein Complexes in the Adult ES Proteome

Whereas the reducing conditions applied in 2D-GE hampered its observation, intriguingly, when comparing reducing to non-reducing 1D-GE migration profiles, traces of disulfide bridge-based oligomeric species were shown to be present in the HMW protein fraction. This finding was corroborated upon further one-dimensional native gel electrophoretic analysis. As no peptides other than those originating from double-domain ASP were noted upon MALDI-MS analysis (Table S2) and lower percentage polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of this oligomeric species demonstrated its approx. 140 kDa molecular weight, we conclude a homo-dimeric double-domain ASP conformation for this low-abundance protein population.

2.3. Vaccination of Calves with the HMW ES Subfraction

Upon conducting the vaccination trial we recorded the time-dependent mean egg-count per gram faeces (EPG) evolution for the HMW group, as displayed in FIG. 2. When compared to the control group, the egg counts for the HMW vaccinated group was dramatically lower (P<0.01) for the entire duration of the experiment, yielding mean EPG reduction levels as high as 91% (Table 2). Whereas worm burden post necropsy was found to not differ significantly between the HMW and the control groups, the HMW group did show significantly higher percentages of inhibited L4 larvae (29.4%) (Table 2). Finally, female and male adult worm length was assessed, with those found in the HMW-treated animals measured as considerably smaller when compared to the control group (P<0.05; Table 2).

FIG. 4 shows the cumulative C. oncophora egg counts for the field trial after a period of 5 months on pasture and again demonstrates that the egg counts for the HMW vaccinated group is significantly lower (70% reduction) compared to the control group. Individual data for the field trial are as follows:

Controls Vaccinated 1519 5673 11246 3278 9011 138 13167 7311 10533 3022 7505 1776

TABLE 2 Overview of parasitological parameters obtained during and after the vaccination trial. n, number of animals; EPG, mean cumulative egg counts; % L4, percentage of L4 worms observed in post-necropsy worm counting. All values represent arithmetic means (+experimentally observed range). Group n EPG Worm count % L4 Worm length (mm) Control 7 7110 (1100- 13200) 6600 (550-12200) 1.68 (0-8.43) F: 12.5 (10.7-13.2) M: 9.50 (8.52-10.1) HMW 1  656 (0-1380)** 3370 (200-6050) 29.4 (6.61-100)** F: 10.4 (9.66-12.4)* M: 8.40 (7.50-9.68)* *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01; F, female; M, male. 2.4. Immune Responses

When compared to the control group, the HMW ES subfraction was found to cause significantly higher levels of Cooperia-specific IgG1 levels in serum of correspondingly immunized animals (P<0.01) (FIG. 3). Additionally, although IgG2 levels were consistently much lower (approx. 15-fold) when compared to IgG1 intensities, the HMW fraction was nevertheless shown to bear significantly higher amounts of IgG2 (P<0.01), relative to the control group.

2.5. Determination and in Silico Characterization of Full-Length Amino Acid Sequences

Even though the complete Cooperia oncophora genome is yet to be fully unravelled, the recently obtained C. oncophora transcriptome database[33] offered a more than adequate alternative as, after having employed it in MS-directed protein identification, we were able to extend those obtained contig/isotig sequences by aligning them to overlapping ones, continuing until start and stop codons were reached. This approach proved successful for nine out of the eventually twelve different proteins present in the adult C. oncophora excretome/secretome (Table 1). For two proteins, more specifically the HMW hypothetical protein (isotig27828; highest homology to the Caenorhabditis remanei hypothetical protein; GenBank accession number XP_003114672) and innexin (isotig12080; highest homology to the C. remanei innexin; GenBank accession number XP_003096841.1), we were unable to extend their sequences until full-length and, based on homology in other species, they are expected to lack 733 and 160 amino acids at their N-termini, respectively. Lastly, whereas mass spectrometric analyses initially identified only peptides from the C-terminal domain of the double-domain ASP, by applying PCR techniques we were able to reveal its sequence until quasi full-length, that is, based on its Cooperia punctata homologue (AAK35199.1), apart from a 21-residue signal peptide. The N- and C-termini of the identified double domain ASP consist of the amino acids LCSLDNGMT (SEQ ID NO: 14) and DEDCKCSSCRCSTQLSMCINPN (SEQ ID NO: 15), respectively.

As an initial crude in silico characterization, software-driven signal sequence prediction, combined with N-linked glycosylation consensus site searches, revealed only the double- and single-domain ASPs and the LMW ES antigens as potentially carrying sugar moieties (Table 1). Further in silico analysis of the obtained full-length sequences yielded molecular weight values corresponding well to those observed in-gel.

2.6. Glycan Analysis of the Cooperia oncophora ES Proteome

Overall ES glycosylation was studied by MALDI-TOF MS analysis upon release of the N- and O-linked glycan moieties. Whereas a clear set of PNGase F-released glycans was detected, no signals could be detected in the PNGase A-specific release (data not shown), thereby indicating that no significant amounts of N-glycans with 1-3-linked fucose modifications of the asparagine-linked N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) are present in the excretome/secretome of adult C. oncophora. Regarding the O-glycan preparation, only minor signals were detected (data not shown). To obtain more information on the presence of glycan moieties on specific proteins in the C. oncophora ES fraction, the N- and O-glycans, released from the LMW, MMW and HMW protein clusters, were analyzed by MALDI-time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry. Whereas no significant amounts of N-glycans could be detected in the LMW and HMW fractions, the major N-glycan signals observed in the total ES pool were also found to be present in the MMW N-glycan spectrum. On the other hand, marginal levels of O-glycan signals were detected in the HMW fraction exclusively. However, these signals could not be assigned to common O-glycan structures (not even putatively) and therefore were not further investigated.

Using the monoisotopic mass of each of the N-glycan peaks observed, monosaccharide compositions were assigned and putative structures deduced. Major signals detected in the spectrum of MMW N-glycans that also appeared in the total ES N-glycan spectrum were derived from glycan moieties with the compositions F1H3N2, H5N2, H6N2 and H7N2 at m/z values 1176.4, 1354.4, 1516.5 and 1678.5 [M−H]⁻, respectively (F, fucose, Fuc; H, hexose, Hex; N, N-acetylhexosamine, HexNAc). These compositions are indicative for a paucimannosidic, core-fucosylated glycan (F1H3N2) and a series of oligomannose glycans Man₅₋₇GlcNAc₂ (Man, mannose). To confirm these assignments a sample of the MMW N-glycans was incubated with α-mannosidase, leading to a spectrum containing detectable signals only at m/z 706.3 and 852.3 for H1N2 (Man1GlcNAc2) and F1H1N2 (Fuc1Man1 GlcNAc2), thereby confirming the presence of the mannose extensions in the untreated sample.

Prompted by the presence of a putative N-glycosylation site in the single-domain ASP in the MMW protein cluster (Table I), we subjected the tryptic glycopeptides derived from the corresponding single-domain ASP gel slice to nano-liquid chromatography (LC) MS/MS analysis. The obtained data were interrogated for the presence of glycosylated peptides by searching for MS/MS spectra containing the common glycan fragment ions H1N1 (m/z 366.1 [M+H]⁺) and H2N1 (m/z 528.2 [M+H]⁺). Interestingly, a series of parent ions was detected that could be assigned to the H5N2, H6N2 and H7N2 glycoforms of the single-domain ASP tryptic peptide WNCTLEAK (1021.5 [M+H]⁺, with cysteine as carbamidomethyl derivative) based on: i) the overall mass of the glycopeptide, and ii) the collision induced dissociation fragment spectra showing the fragmentation patterns of the glycosidic linkages in each peptide glycoform. An overview of detected and fragmented glycopeptide moieties derived from the same gel slice is provided in Table S3. From the parent ion m/z 1201.1 [M+2H]²⁺ a clear series of [M+H]²⁺ fragment ions indicate the loss of six hexose residues and one N-acetylhexosamine (HexNAc), leaving the corresponding peptide-fragment ion with a single N-acetyl-glucosamine (GlcNAc) residue linked to the asparagine residue at m/z 612.8. Similar (but less intense) spectra were obtained for the H5N2 and H7N2 glycoforms of the same peptide, indicating that the Man₅₋₇GlcNAc₂ N-glycans released from MMW proteins are present on a single glycosylation site of the single-domain ASP.

TABLE S3 Glycopeptide variants detected in the tryptic digest of the single-domain ASP, analyzed by MS/MS. Different glycoforms in line with the  MMW ES N-glycan profile were detected, with H5N2 and H6N2 glycoforms giving rise to the highest ion intensities. Parent Ion Ion Seq Missed Detected Charge Peptide ID cleavages Glycan 727.7 [M+3H]³⁺ LRWNCTLEAK  9 1 H3N2 800.7 [M+3H]³⁺ WNCTLEAK 10 0 H6N2 836.4 [M+3H]³⁺ LRWNCTLEAK  9 1 H5N2 876.4 [M+3H]³⁺ WNCTLEAKAR 11 1 H6N2 890.4 [M+3H]³⁺ LRWNCTLEAK  9 1 H6N2 957.4 [M+2H]²⁺ WNCTLEAK 10 0 H3N2 1038.4 [M+2H]²⁺ WNCTLEAK 10 0 H4N2 1119.9 [M+2H]²⁺ WNCTLEAK 10 0 H5N2 1200.0 [M+2H]²⁺ WNCTLEAK 10 0 H6N2 1281.5 [M+2H]²⁺ WNCTLEAK 10 0 H7N2 3. Discussion

Combining the MALDI-MS-obtained identifications from both two-dimensional gel electrophoretic and size exclusion chromatographic fractionation of the adult-stage Cooperia oncophora excretome/secretome yielded twelve different proteins distributed over three distinct molecular weight clusters (Table 1). Whereas a total of twelve proteins may appear as modest when compared to the ES fractions of other helminths such as Ascaris suum (41), Schistosoma japonicum (42) and Haemonchus contortus (43), often revealing up to a hundred or more different proteins in their excretome/secretome, such quantitative differences may arise from a combination of: i) the host-worm interface differing substantially between parasites and thus posing specific challenges during infection, and ii) the excretome/secretome of some helminths having already been further developed, with potentially redundant proteins eliminated and/or crucial high-activity proteins having been enriched. Nevertheless, although a number of proteins with unknown functions were identified, the excretome/secretome from adult C. oncophora also bears a set of proteins that have previously been noted in other nematodes/helminths and whose functions have been (partially) elucidated. Among those we find aldose reductase and thioredoxin peroxidase, two proteins known as being involved in detoxification mechanisms, the first converting the mutagenic and toxic methylglyoxal, a by-product of glycolysis, into acetol (44), and the latter acting as an antioxidant which eliminates reactive oxygen species generated during oxygen metabolism, oxidative processes and host immune responses (45). Another documented protein that was identified from the adult C. oncophora ES fraction is innexin (Pfam: PF00876), an invertebrate equivalent to the connexin family of molecules. These are gap-junction proteins that, upon oligomerization, form intercellular channels through which ions and small molecules may pass, thereby allowing intercellular communication (46).

Apart from two as of yet non-annotated molecules (isotig32303 and isotig10739), we additionally revealed the low molecular weight spot cluster (LMW) as essentially consisting of three different proteins, i.e. 14-kDa ES protein, ES antigen 1 and ES antigen 2 protein. Strikingly, although functionally still poorly characterized, this set of proteins has previously seen its Cooperia punctata equivalents suggested as potential vaccine candidates (47), however, no reports of a successful outcome have been published. Why these proteins display such extensive diversity, as seen in their 2D-GE spot profile, remains elusive, but it has been hypothesized that this may create antigenic diversity and/or a set of redundant proteins which may be eliminated through the host immune response without serious detrimental effects on parasite viability (47).

Interestingly, both the HMW and MMW fractions were found to have one type of protein in common, that is, they each harbour an activation-associated secreted protein (ASP). Such proteins constitute a Strongylida-specific subgroup of the CAP protein superfamily (also termed sperm-cell glycoprotein/Tpx-1/Ag5/PR-1/Sc7 (SCP/TAPS) proteins; Pfam PF00188), which displays an extreme diversity both in occurrence, covering prokaryotes and eukaryotes, and function, having been shown to be involved in processes as diverse as reproduction, cancer and immune regulation [48]. To date, however, the true biological function of ASPs still remains enigmatic, despite substantial efforts having recently been made [49-54], and even though research in that particular field is still in its infancy, some ASPs have been tested in vaccination trials, both in their native and recombinant forms [55-58]. As of yet, ASPs have been found in three configurations: i) as double domain ASPs, composed of two distinct but related CAP domains, ii) as C-type single domain ASPs, and iii) as N-type single domain ASPs, the second and the latter bearing the highest homology to the C- and N-terminus of the double domain ASPs, respectively [51]. Our study of the adult C. oncophora excretome/secretome yielded a double-domain ASP as part of the HMW cluster, and a single-domain ASP, belonging to the MMW group (Table 1). Whereas the double-domain ASP was predicted to carry a signal sequence and bears two consensus acceptor sites for N-linked glycosylation, it was revealed not to carry any such moieties. Furthermore, upon 2D-GE analysis, a train of four distinct spots was observed, all of which correspond to this double-domain ASP, reflecting a level of sequence diversity, as is further disclosed herein. Whereas unnoticed upon 2D-GE analysis, the one-dimensional gel migration pattern for the double-domain ASP showed a doublet both under reducing and non-reducing conditions. Since it does not carry any sugar moieties, this observation may be attributed to partial processing of the signal peptide. Perhaps the most surprising observation regarding this double-domain ASP was a small portion of it migrating as a dimer, exclusively upon non-reducing gel electrophoresis, thereby implying it to be disulfide bridge-based. Whereas single-domain ASPs are known to dimerize in solution [49], these are the first indications of a double-domain ASP mimicking this behaviour.

In contrast to its double-domain counterpart, the single-domain ASP, as found in the MMW protein cluster, displayed no signs of detectable sequence diversity or oligomerization. Interestingly, corroborating in silico predictions in terms of signal sequence and N-glycosylation consensus sites, the single-domain ASP was indeed shown to carry an N-linked glycan moiety at Asn93. Although its general impact on protein structure and immunogenicity is still to be conclusively determined, the structure of the glycan group was found to resemble that of the Ostertagia ostertagi single-domain ASP [53], the crystal structure of which was recently solved and suggests a modest structural role for the glycan moiety. Analogous to the double-domain ASP, upon one-dimensional gel electrophoretic analysis of the single-domain ASP a doublet of bands was observed with the lower molecular weight band much less abundant when compared to the double-domain ASP situation where both bands of the doublet were quasi equally intense. Possibly, the lower single-domain ASP band represents the protein devoid of its Asn93-linked glycan moiety.

Our vaccination trial showed that the HMW protein fraction, essentially consisting of the double-domain ASP, is particularly useful for vaccine development, with EPG reduction levels surpassing 90%, drastically inhibited L4 larvae and substantial decreases in worm length when compared to the control group (Table 2). Moreover, in serum of immunized calves IgG1 levels are elevated upon its administration, with also a marginal IgG2 response (FIG. 3). Finally, vaccination with the HMW fraction conferred protection against a natural infection with Cooperia oncophora in a field trial.

In conclusion, the double-domain ASP yields substantial protection levels and displays low complexity in terms of post-translational modifications, thereby facilitating its recombinant up-scaling process. As noted above, the efficacious HMW fraction employed in the vaccine trial consisted mostly of the double-domain ASP and is a preferred Cooperia oncophera vaccine component.

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The invention claimed is:
 1. A method of vaccinating an animal against infection with Cooperia oncophora, said method comprising administering an isolated Cooperia oncophora protein to the animal, wherein said protein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1, and wherein said protein confers protection against said infection.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said protein is part of a composition, said composition further comprising a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier or diluent, and optionally an adjuvant.
 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the animal is a calve, cow, steer or bull.
 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein said protein is administered intramuscularly or subcutaneously.
 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein said protein is administered at least twice with an interval of two to ten weeks between two vaccinations.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the amino acid sequence of the protein is immunogenic.
 7. A method of vaccinating an animal against infection with Cooperia oncophora, said method comprising administering an isolated Cooperia oncophora protein to the animal, wherein said protein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1, wherein said protein confers protection against said infection, and wherein said protein is capable of generating an immune response in said animal.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the amino acid sequence of the protein is immunogenic. 